Hungary Chastises Broadcaster RTL Group

BUDAPEST—The Hungarian government Friday chastised RTL Group, Europe’s largest television channel and radio station network, in a deepening spat over taxes, saying the company should act as a good corporate citizen and pay its taxes instead of scaring off investors with its unfounded comments about the country.

Hungary launched a much criticized advertising tax for all commercial media earlier this year, with most privately-owned media firms protesting against it with a blackout in June. RTL Group, which is majority-owned by Bertelsmann, claims it is the only media company to pay the top, 40% tax rate.

“The precipitous introduction of the confiscatory advertising tax is an alarming signal for all international investors in Hungary,” RTL, which owns the most popular private TV channel in Hungary, RTL Klub, said in its first-half earnings release Thursday.

It said the new Hungarian tax was the main reason for lower first-half earnings.

RTL is pursuing “all legal options,” RTL Co-CEOs Anke Schaeferkordt and Guillaume de Posch said in a conference call.

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